


The Hunt

by BXVAce



Series: The Mandalorian Gunslinger [1]
Category: Frozen (Disney Movies), Rise of the Guardians (2012), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, F/M, Mandalorian OC, Powerless Jack and Elsa, Rewrite, but not the main character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-03
Updated: 2020-09-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:20:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26271028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BXVAce/pseuds/BXVAce
Summary: With Jack taking Elsa on the run, Prince Hans hires bounty hunters to find them in the mountains of Arendelle. One of the hunters is a Mandalorian, who uncovers the truth behind the scheme. What will happen now?
Relationships: Elsa (Disney) & Jack Frost (Guardians of Childhood), Elsa (Disney)/Jack Frost (Guardians of Childhood)
Series: The Mandalorian Gunslinger [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2047793
Kudos: 5





	The Hunt

_Galidraan_

Elsa looked out her window, hoping for the speeder to arrive soon with Jack on board. Clutched in her hands was the transmitter that he needed to see, along with Anna and Kristoff. Time was of the essence and she ordered her soldiers to bring him right away. The travel across the lands was indeed lengthy, but she was the queen of the lands of Arendelle so when she told them to move fast, they needed to move fast.

Finally, the speeder arrived in the courtyard. She lifted her dress up enough so she could run down to the courtyard. Running through the halls and corridors and out the gate to see Jack had already left the speeder and was waiting for her. Her eyes streamed tears as she ran faster towards him. He had his arms out, not saying a word as she lunged into his embrace. They held onto each other tightly as she cried into his chest.

“Elsa, what’s wrong?” Jack asked. He looked up to see Kristoff and Anna run up to them. He asked them, “What’s wrong?”

“Your guess is as good as ours.” Kristoff told him.

Anna told him, “A droid sent her a transmission and after she saw it, she’s been emotional.”

Pulling herself from Jack’s chest, she looked at all of them and said, “You need to see this in private.”

* * *

Back in her study with Anna, Jack and Kristoff, Elsa placed the transmitter on her desk and activated it. From the small device came the hologram of Prince Hans, the youngest prince of the Southern Isles. He has been trying to ask for Elsa’s hand in marriage ever since Anna and Kristoff got married, originally attempting to marry the princess. His intent was to marry into the Arendellian royalty and take control since he had twelve older brothers that had reigned over the Isles and he had no chance at any rule of his own. However, Elsa’s heart belonged to Jack ever since they were children, despite her being a queen and him being a hunter who lived on the other side of the mountain range.

With the transmission active, Hans told Elsa, “Queen Elsa, for many months as I have attempted to win your hand in marriage, you’ve denied my advances time and time again. I’m sorry, but you leave me no choice. I have an army of mercenaries at my command and if you don’t accept, then it will be a declaration of war. I will be there in twenty four hours to ask you again. Deny me again and I will order my men to swarm Arendelle and will lay waste until you agree to my terms.”

Then the hologram ended.

Angered, Anna looked at Elsa and shouted, “That slimy bastard! He’s got a lot of gull!”

“We need to contact the Governor!” Kristoff exclaimed. “No, the Republic! We need to send a message to the Senate and tell them what’s going on!”

“We send them a message, they’ll just debate it.” Jack told him. “That’s all they’ve been doing ever since we sent them our first call for help.”

“There’s no choice.” Elsa said to them all. She looked up at Jack and told him, “I’m so sorry, but I have to accept.”

“No!” he cried, walking next to her and taking her hands. “No, there’s gotta be another way!”

“There isn’t.” she sobbed. “I love you, Jack. I truly do, but if I don’t agree to his terms, Arendelle’s doomed.”

The room then filled with Elsa’s sobs, soon followed by Anna’s as she leaned against her. Jack held onto Elsa and Kristoff held onto Anna as they cried.

“Wait!” Anna shouted, bolting up from her sister. Everyone looked at her and she told them, “I have an idea!”

“W-What is it?” Elsa asked, both her and Jack wiping her eyes.

Looking up at Jack, Anna asked, “Can you hide her until we can get help?”

Jack was about to say something, but Elsa cut him off, “Wait, what?”

“It’s only for a little while.” Anna reassured her. “We’ll figure something out, for the time being I’ll take over the throne and you can hide out somewhere.”

“No, it won’t work.” Jack told her. “Hans will send his army anyway. The only way to secure Arendelle’s safety is for Elsa to…Nevermind.”

“What?” Kristoff asked.

“I can’t say.”

“Just tell us.”

Still holding Elsa, he looked down at her before looking around, finally saying, “The only way to make sure Hans doesn’t get his hands on Arendelle is for Elsa to step down and let Anna take over.”

Gasps escaped both Elsa and Anna’s throats.

“Jack, I don’t know about that.” Kristoff said.

“You two are married already. “Jack said. “You’re Arendellian, Kristoff. I can’t marry Elsa because I’m from another city.”

Growling in frustration, Anna said, “Why didn’t we change that rule?”

“I tried, the council shot me down.” Elsa replied. Taking a moment, she sighed and said, “This may be our only shot.”

Shocked, Jack looked down at her and asked, “Are…Are you sure?”

“Yes.” she nuzzled against his chest and said, “I love Arendelle, but I love you too. He needs Arendelle to rule and he needs me alive so he can get control. If Anna’s in charge, then he can’t force a marriage. She’s married and he can’t force her to hand over control. He’d be breaking the treaties and the Republic would get involved.”

Anna placed her hand on Elsa’s should and said, “It’s only until the Republic deliberates. Once everything’s blown over, you can come back and reinstate you.”

Stepping forward, Kristoff declared, “I’ll keep Anna safe.”

“I know you will.” Elsa said to him with a smile. Looking back up at Jack, she said, “We need to leave right away.”

_Three days later…_

“Have you found her yet?” Prince Hans ordered his commander.

The soldier shook his head and said, “We have no idea where to look, much less as to where she’d be going.”

“Send out every available unit we have to scour the mountains. There’s only so many places she could hide.”

“With all due respect Prince Hans, but we’ve tried that. Half of our entire garrison combed through the mountains and found nothing, not even a trace of her.”

Hans held back his anger to the best of his abilities, but he calmed himself when he had an idea.

“Contact the Bounty Hunter’s Guild. Tell them I want as many hunters they can spare and fabricate a reward for her capture.”

“What can the Guild provide that our men can’t?”

“I’ll tell you what.” Hans smiled, thinking of the prospect of hiring the Guild and the kind of hunter he’d hope to attract. He leaned forward and said, “A Mandalorian.”

_Garduun_

Garduun was considered to be the second Kamino, all ocean with endless storms. However, this planet was private property, owned by the Bounty Hunter’s Guild. The planet had widespread rigs that housed and stationed many bounty hunters from across the galaxy, from Trandoshans, Rodian trackers, freelance hunters and, most of all, Mandalorians. Some stuck together with the Mandalorian Elites in their enclave, but some went on to become solo hunters that still stuck with the code. Such as the one looking out to the roaring oceans. This Mandalorian stood tall, his cape flying in the heavy winds. His suit was black and his armor was green and red, carbon scored with the paint weathering away from the years of abuse. He watched as the ships flew about the rainy airways, some losing control and crashing into the waters. After a moment of watching, he heard his comlink ring, calling him back inside.

The doors slid open for him, his wet boots squeaking along the alloy floors and he walked up to the droid waiting for him.

“What’ve we got, Roz?” he asked.

Handing him a tracking fob and a bounty puck, the droid told him, “Ya going to Galidraan, Ace. High profile case here.”

Activating the puck to see the hologram of Elsa’s profile, Ace said, “Doesn’t look like much. What’s the hunt?”

“That’s the Queen of Arendelle, Elsa. Her fiance, some hoity toity prince, said that she was kidnapped a few days ago. He sent out a scouting party but they didn’t find anything. They think she is in the northern mountain range above Arendelle, lots of ground to cover.”

“What’s the reward?”

“Two hundred pounds of Galidraan gold for alive, nothing for dead.”

Shrugging and deactivating the puck, Ace said, “Seems simple enough. Prep my ship and get her ready for take off.”

“Wait there’s more!” Roz stopped him. “I have to tell you that you’re not the only one taking the hunt. This prince gave fobs to everyone on this rig. This’ll be like the Great Hunt.”

“Well I feel honored.” Ace sarcastically remarked.

“Quit whining, Ace. You go now and you’ll get a head start.”

“Yeah.” Ace groaned, slipping the fob and puck into his pouch. Giving Roz a salute, he said, “See ya, Roz. Wish me luck.”

“Good luck, Ace.” Roz chuckled as Ace walked into the lift towards the docks.

The lift lowered into the docking bay and Ace looked around to see the hunters prepping their ships. All eyes were on him, being the only Mandalorian in the bay. Everyone knew where all of these ships were heading, but Ace was always a step ahead. His ship was already fueled and prepped. Of course, he wasn’t the only one as some of the ships were already flying out into the storm.

 _Simple competition._ He thought. _I’ll take care of them when I get there._

Ace’s ship was a U-Wing, used by the Rebel Alliance during the final years of the Civil War. He bought it years ago and added his own modifications and stripped the paint down to the bare alloy. He climbed in and went right for the cockpit. He quickly switched the ship on and wasted no time to close the doors and lift off. The ship broke through the clouds and atmosphere, seeing the sun for the first time in a while. Giving the lever on the command panel a slight push, the ship took off into hyperspace.

_Galidraan_

With the night upon them, Jack and Elsa made camp deep in the snow covered forest along the mountain. They had lost time from running from Hans’ men, but they finally had a moment just to set up a tent, light a fire and just take a moment to relax. 

Elsa was more accustomed to the travel garb she wore to help her hike along the muddy trails. Her boots had some caking on them and the hem of her coat was dirty, but she couldn’t complain since they were on the run. This was also different from her usual bright blue clothes that she wore. She was given a sort of tanish tunic by Jack. It was similar to how he dressed, but his was blue with the same kind of brown pants. The boots were made out of nerf hide and were surprisingly comfortable. She really was liking this new look. She had to admit, it was far more comfortable than her regal dresses. She looked up to see Jack return with more firewood.

“Are you cold?” Jack asked her as he laid the wood out on the fire.

Smiling up at him, she told him, “You know the cold never bothered me.”

“Hey, what kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn’t ask?” Once the fire was stronger, he sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her and held her closer, kissing her cheek. He looked up at the stars and said, “Won’t be long. We won’t have to camp out here tomorrow. We’ll reach some friends of mine by noon and we can rest there.”

“Do you trust these ‘friends of yours’?”

“I’d be crazy not to.” Jack said, holding up his gaffi staff. “I’ve known them all my life and they taught me how to survive out here in the mountains.”

Elsa chuckled.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. It’s just that you sound like Kristoff with the Rock Trolls.”

Jack smiled down at her and asked, “But I make it sound better, right?”

That made Elsa laugh. She gazed into his eyes before leaning up and kissing him.

Jack told her, “Okay, why don’t you go get some sleep?”

“Are you going to join me?”

“I have to keep guard. The sun will be up in a few hours and I’m sure the fire’s gonna attract some unwanted attention.”

“Okay.” Elsa kissed his cheek and said, “Be careful.” She stood up and climbed into the tent, leaving Jack by the fire on guard.

* * *

A pair of hunters scaled down the slopes of the mountain. The early sun covered them with shade from the treeline above them so they had plenty of cover save for the crunch of the snow beneath their feet through the howling wind. However, that didn’t mean they were safe.

In the bushes nearby, Ace was crouching with his rifle aiming at them. His weapon of choice was a F-11D, modified to his standards, high powered scope complete with auto receiver linked to his helmet, high impact recoil stock and upgraded to full auto rapid fire. The rapid fire evident with one squeeze of the trigger. A spray of blaster fire struck the hunters dead without a warning. With that, Ace stood up satisfied with his mark.

Lowering his rifle, he pulled out the tracking fob. He scanned about and waited for a stronger signal. Once it received it, the beep from the fob rang louder and slightly faster. He had his heading and began to walk down the mountain.

But in the distance, he knew he was being watched.

* * *

There was the smell of burning wood and cooking meat and fish that filled Jack and Elsa’s noses as they walked along the muddy trail. Jack took in the smell and told her they were close. After a few moments of walking, they came across a small village, tall wooden teepees and huts all spread out in the clearing. The people wore clothes like what Jack and Elsa were wearing along with animal pelts to keep them warm. Their skins were tanned and their hair was dark. The women were taking care of their duties while the men made weapons and cut meat. The children were playing and running around when a group of them saw Jack and Elsa approaching.

“Mama, Papa, Jack’s back!” one of them cheered. The little boy ran up to Jack and Jack held his arms out for him. The child jumped into his arms and Jack lifted him up, the two of them laughing. The boy said to Jack, “I missed you!”

“I missed you too, Isa!” Jack cheered.

Elsa watched Jack with the boy and couldn’t help but smile. He was always great with children, but when the rest of the kids gathered around him and he started to play with them, she just felt her joy rise in her chest. He confided in her that he wanted nothing more than to protect all the children in the galaxy. He valued their innocence and saw it as a beacon of hope, especially now of all times. In the shadow of the fall of the Empire. Elsa knew that if she were to have a child with Jack, he’d be the best father ever.

Jack turned around to her and told the kids, “You guys wanna meet someone?”

“Yeah!” all the kids cheered as their parents came over to greet Jack and Elsa.

Jack lifted a little girl up in his arms and carried her over to Elsa and introduced, “Everyone, this is Elsa.” Turning back to Elsa, he told her, “This is the Northuldra, the people of the sun. They’ve lived here in the mountains since the time of the Old Republic.”

Elsa bowed her head and greeted, “It’s an honor to meet you all.”

An older woman stepped forward and greeted Elsa, “I am Yelana, I am the chieftain of the Northuldra. Jack has told us much about you. You are more than welcomed here.”

“Thank you.” Elsa smiled at Yelana, so happy for the treatment she was receiving from everyone.

Taking her hand, Yelana said to Elsa, “You must be hungry. We have fresh soup cooking over here.” A young woman walked over and Yelana introduced Elsa to her, “Honeymaren, could you help Elsa to her sleeping quarters?”

“Absolutely.” Honeymaren agreed. She took Elsa’s hand and said, “You’ll love our hazelnut soup.”

“I’ve never tried it, but I’ve always wanted to.” Elsa replied. She looked back to see Jack standing with Yelana. “Are you not coming?”

“I’ll be there in a moment.” he told her, letting Elsa go with Honeymaren.

Yelana looked up at Jack and said, “She’s very beautiful. You’re a lucky man, Jack.”

“Yeah.” Jack said softly. Looking down at Yelana, he said, “I can’t thank you enough. I promise we’ll only be here for the night and be on our way tomorrow.”

“Jack, you two stay as long as you need.” Yelana said sternly. “You know we’ll always be at your service.”

“Yelana, that’s not necessarily. My dad-”

“Saved us all those years ago. The Northuldra will always aid the name of Frost.”

Jack could only smile and place his hand on Yelana’s shoulder as a sign of gratitude. He then looked over to see Elsa, talking with Northuldrans while taking a taste of the soup, her face lighting up at the delightful taste. She talked a little more then looked over his way, her smile growing brighter at his sight. The two just looked at each other as Yelana and Jack walked over to her.

* * *

Ace looked down the slope and saw it fell into a ravine. If the map was correct and these marauders were taking one of the hidden paths across the mountains, he’d have to cross it if there was any chance of cutting them off and collecting the queen.

Kinda wish I brought my jetpack. Ace thought to himself. He usually tried to think ahead of the game, but there was always that slight detail that he’d overlook.

Then the alarm in his helmet went off. Someone was coming up behind him. He turned and pointed his blaster at whoever was behind him. It was a Gran and he fell to a spray of blaster fire.

He wasn’t alone. From the side came another hunter, shooting at Ace with a DLT-19. Thankfully his beskar protected him, but the impacts knocked him off balance and nearly sent him down the slope into the ravine. Knowing that the hunter wasn’t done, he rolled behind a downed tree for cover. He listened in on the fire, but he needed to know which hunter was shooting at him. He knew most of the hunters on his rig back on Garduun so he knew their weaknesses. If he could just get a glance, that was all he needed.

There was a break in the fire so he took the opportunity to look back behind the tree, catching a good look at the hunter before he fired again. Ace jumped back behind the tree, processing who he saw. An older man, overweight, tanned skin, dark hair messily oiled back. From what Ace caught, he was dressed in all black saved for the haggard brown leather coat he wore. Ace didn’t know him, but he knew that coat, it was Imperial standard.

There was another break and Ace jumped up from behind the tree, only to be greeted with the butt of the hunter’s blaster to his face. Ace was knocked back and rolled when he saw the hunter ready to bring the stock down onto him. Ace then kicked his foot under the hunter’s feet, knocking him down. He pulled his knife from its sheath that was hidden in his boot and was ready to stab the hunter, who blocked him with his forearms. The hunter rolled to get Ace on his back, but neither were aware how close they were to the edge of the slope so they rolled down it, right off into the ravine.

Ace fired his whipcord and it wrapped around a branch sticking out from the edge of the cliff. He stopped, but the other hunter grabbed onto his leg. Ace lifted his other leg and kicked him in the face, unaware that the fight had damaged his whipcord mechanism. It popped open and the rest of the cord unraveled down past the hunter, who grabbed onto it after Ace kicked him again, letting him go. Ace scaled up the cord and climbed over the edge. Not taking the time to catch his breath, he pulled out his knife again and was ready to cut the cord.

“Wait!” the hunter begged. “Wait, hear me out!”

“Why should I?” Ace asked. “You’ll just try to kill me again, so…”

“I won’t, I swear!”

“You’re lying! I know you are!”

“Oh yeah? How do you know?”

“I’m a Mandalorian. I’m trained to know when people are lying.”

The hunter was quiet for a moment, then he said, “Okay, fine. You got me. I was lying, but now I have an idea and you might like it.”

This time, Ace could tell he wasn’t lying, but he needed to proceed with caution. He told the hunter, “Go ahead.”

“It’s a gang of marauders, right? How many can we go through alone? Three, four maybe? Then we get our throats cut. If there’s two of us, we’ll have a better chance.”

“You might be right, but how do I know you won’t try to double cross me?”

“Because, there’s a big benefit in it for both of us.”

“How do you figure?”

“We’ll split the reward.”

Ace thought for a moment. He still wasn’t lying, but he was still a mercenary out for money. Ace still needed to air on the side of caution.

The hunter added, “Think about it. A single gram of Galidraan gold is worth a lot on the black market.”

“Yeah, and two hundred pounds is a lot for the both of us.”

“So there’s plenty to go around.”

Ace thought for a moment and agreed. He sheathed his knife back into his boot and warned the hunter, “You try anything funny, I’ll send you back to Garduun in a food tube.”

“Trust me.” the hunter said, reaching for Ace’s hand. “I’m Dodge, by the way. Quentin Dodge.”

“Ace.” he replied, pulling the hunter up.

* * *

"Are you enjoying yourself?” Jack asked Elsa as they strolled through the Northuldra village hand in hand.

“I am. Everyone’s so nice.” Elsa smiled up at him. She looked over to watch the children play as their parents worked in the village. However, there was something on her mind that she needed to ask him about. She looked back up at him and asked, “Jack, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“How do you know the Northuldra?”

Jack nodded slightly, knowing this question would come up. He chuckled and said, “Well when I was seven, bandits from nearby towns were attacking the Northuldra. To find help, Yelana sent out scouts to the towns at the base of the mountain. One got to Burgess and only one person volunteered.”

“Who?”

Jack gave her a sad smile and said, “My dad.”

Elsa stopped and looked up at him wide eyed. She stammered, “Your-Your father?”

“Yeah. No one else wanted to go. ‘Not our problem’, everyone said. But my dad, he wanted to help. He took his blaster and went up into the mountain. He never came back.”

Elsa gasped and covered her lips.

“Hm…He came here and a few days later, Yelana herself came to our town and told my mother that my dad fought the bandits and won, but at the cost of his life.”

“Jack…I’m so sorry.”

Jack then placed his hands on her shoulders and kissed her forehead, telling her, “Thank you, but this story has a happy ending. You see, my mom was ill and pregnant with my sister. Yelana had her sleigh, but she ordered her scouts to make room for my mom and I. She brought us here and her medics took care of my mom. My sister Emma was born healthy and my mom recovered. Yelana explained that because of my father’s sacrifice, the people of Northuldra are forever in our debt. My mom didn’t want that, but they insisted. My mom and Emma went back to Burgess, but I stayed.”

“Why’s that?” Elsa asked.

“I wanted to learn how to hunt. I wanted to learn how to fight. They took me in and raised me. I grew up in these woods.”

“Did you see your family at all?”

“Of course. I had to be the breadwinner.”

“And he proved himself more times than we can count.” Jack and Elsa looked over to see Yelana walking up to them, a wide smile on her face. She placed her hand on Jack’s shoulder and said, “His father would be proud of him.”

Elsa smiled up at Jack, both women giving him such adoration made him bashful. He looked down and Elsa couldn’t help but chuckle at his reaction.

Jack raised his eyebrow at her and asked teasingly, “Oh, you think it’s funny, huh?” He then wrapped his arms around her lower body and lifted her up, making her squeal. Most of the village looked their way in confusion, but Yelana only laughed. Jack asked, “You think it’s funny now?”

“Yes!” Elsa teased back.

Jack placed her back on her feet and the two gazed lovingly into each other's eyes. After a while, they realized that the entire village was looking at them, smiling at them. He cleared his throat and bashfully said, “I’m gonna-I’m gonna secure us some provisions and we’ll leave tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay.” she muttered happily and watched him walk away.

Yelana smiled at Elsa and said, “He’s wonderful, isn’t he.”

“He is.” Elsa dreamily replied.

“His father was a good man, too. I had some time to talk with him before he…” Yelana’s expression turned somber. Elsa’s happy expression faded when she looked to Yelana, knowing that the subject of the matter was turning grim. Yelana told her, “He was an honorable man. He chose to help us because no one else would. He wanted to create a legacy for his family that his son would be proud of.”

“He knew he wasn’t coming back.” Elsa said.

“He knew, yet he still fought. Jack’s so much like him.” Yelana looked at Elsa and said, “Jack’s biggest regret, aside from not being able to protect all the children in the galaxy, is not being able to marry you.”

Elsa’s eyes widened slightly, surprised that Yelana would know about their situation. Jack must have talked to her about it.

Yelana placed her hand on Elsa’s shoulder and explained, “Jack confided in me about it. I know of your laws, that only a commoner from your village can marry into royalty. No one from another village can. This breaks his heart because he loves you so much.”

Elsa only looked away, knowing all too well that Jack was heart broken by their laws. She wanted to marry him too, but the laws are all but set in stone and she had tried for years to abolish them, but the elders won’t allow it. They were elitists to the old ways and refused such a drastic change, even for the queen.

It was times like this that she wished she wasn’t queen. She loved the days when her queenly duties were put to rest and she could just go into the village and spend time with her subjects, play with the children, bake with the bakers, spend time in the classrooms with the students, just have fun. More importantly, if she wasn’t queen, she could marry the man she loves. Jack came to her many years ago when they were fresh into their teen years when Jack joined a group of traders to negotiate hunting privileges into Arendelle. Elsa saw him and she was instantly attracted to him. They spent time together and would often be at each other's side when he would come into town with fresh kills. As they grew older, they grew more in love and she finally confessed her feelings to him, which he returned.

“Elsa?” Yelana shook her out of her thoughts. Elsa cleared her head and apologized. Yelana smiled and said, “I can see you love him too. I understand that your life isn’t easy as queen and I know I’m overstepping my bounds here, but I can see you’re extremely happy with him. I think you should do what your heart tells you. It’s always the right thing to do.”

Yelana then left Elsa with her thoughts. Elsa took a moment, but then went off to think things over.

* * *

Dodge and Ace walked further down the mountain, the sun hitting high noon. The snow on the ground lit up the scenery and the clear sky made it more beautiful. The two hunters said nothing as they trailed down the mountain, just set on the hunt. Dodge walked past a tree that had a section of bark scraped off and had a symbol carved into the tree.

“Yo, Ace!” He called the Mandalorian over. “What’s this?”

Ace looked the symbol over and said, “That’s a sun symbol. It looks like we’re in Northuldra territory.”

“What’s Northuldra?”

“They’re a tribe that lives in these mountains.”

“Are they dangerous?”

“Nah. They hunt, fish and trade, that’s it. They’re peaceful.”

Ace and Dodge began to walk again when Dodge stopped Ace and pointed to the ground. Blood drops in the snow. Their eyes followed the trail and saw it go by a boulder. Drawing their weapons, the two hunters creeped towards the rock. They slowly looked around it and saw extensive blood spatter all over the rock and the ground, like something was torn apart. The two went closer and looked over the spot, examining any remains, bones or anything. Nothing.

“You think it was a person?” Dodge asked.

Ace took a look around and noticed the claw marks on the rock. He said, “Whatever it was, it was trying to get away. Judging by those claw marks, it looks like a dire cat.”

“But what killed it?”

“I don’t know, but I don’t want to be around to find out.”

Then there was a snap in the distance. Ace turned around and pointed his blaster in its direction. Dodge looked over to, but neither of them saw anything.

Ace relaxed and said, “Okay, let's get moving.”

Then there was a loud roar from their left and they both turned to see a massive wampa charging their way. Both men leaped out of the way as it raced past them. Ace rolled onto his back to aim at the wampa, but it quickly turned around and swatted at him, sending him flying away. He lost his blaster when he was sent flying. The wampa turned to Dodge, who was getting up and pointed his blaster at it, but it slapped the blaster out of his hand with the back of its paw, making him fall back to the ground. It towered over him and he slid back. Before the wampa could attack, Ace leaped onto its back and wrapped his arms around its throat. The creature shoved him off and into a tree before he could firmly lock on. Ace shouted in pain as he felt his back spread from the impact. He hit the ground and blacked out.

While Ace was distracting the wampa, Dodge ran for his blaster. Dodge grabbed his rifle, turned and rapid fired at the wampa’s face. It stopped before collapsing to the ground, dead from the blast. Realizing he was in the clear, he dropped his rifle and exhaled a stressed breath.

Dodge heard Ace laughing and looked over to see the Mandalorian on his hands and knees, one hand on his neck. Ace said to him, “You know, for an Imp, that wasn’t bad shooting.”

Dodge only smirked and climbed to his feet, then went over to help Ace up.

* * *

Elsa stood in the woods just outside the Northuldra, nervously holding her holo-communicator in her hand. She spent some time making her decision, and after much deliberation, she made her choice. Now, all she had to do was talk with someone very important. She held her communicator out and sent the signal, hoping they were nearby. After a few seconds of ringing, the hologram of Anna projected.

“Elsa?” Anna gasped. “Are you alright? Everything okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Elsa lied.

“No you’re not. What’s going on?”

Elsa only sighed in response. Anna always knew when she was lying. She finally came clean and said, “Anna…You know I love you, right?”

“Of course, silly.”

“And I love Jack too.”

“Well, duh. Elsa, tell me what’s wrong.”

“Anna…I want to marry Jack.”

“I know.”

“And I-”

“Elsa, are you trying to tell me you’re staying with him?”

“Anna…I’m sorry.”

Anna chuckled and shook her head, confusing Elsa. Anna looked up and asked, “Elsa, are you asking me if I’d be upset if you stayed with Jack? Because if you are, I’m not.”

“R-Really?”

“Of course! Elsa, I love you, but you need your happiness. Anyone can see how much you love Jack and how much you suffer when he’s not around.”

“Anna, I hope you don’t think I love you any less because I don’t.”

“I know you don’t. I love you just as much as I love Kristoff, but you’re not happy here without Jack. Elsa please, go. Be with him, get married, make babies, I know you’ll make cute ones together.”

Elsa could help but tearfully chuckle at that comment.

“But don’t spoil them! That’s my job! Grow old together. Be happy. Elsa, stay with him.”

“What about you?”

“We’ll be fine. Hans hasn’t returned since you left.”

That didn’t help Elsa at all. Hans was cunning and conniving, he could be up to anything.

“Elsa, you okay?”

“What?” Elsa shook her head.

“You blanked out there.”

“This…This is just…”

“Elsa, please. Stay with Jack.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes! Look, we have everything under control here!”

“Okay, okay.” Elsa chuckled. She looked at the hologram of Anna and said, “Thank you, Anna.”

“You don’t have to thank me. I love you, Elsa.”

“I love you too, sis.”

“We’ll see each other again. Until then, be careful.”

“You too.”

“Bye.”

“Bye.”

Then the transmission ended, Elsa wiping her eyes from the tears of joy. She trusted Anna’s judgement and was happy that her sister approved of her choice. Now, all she had to do was talk to Jack.

* * *

Ace was now regretting complementing Dodge on his marksmanship because now he wasn’t shutting up. For the past half hour as they trekked the forest trail, Ace heard nothing but Dodge talking about his time in the Empire as a trooper. He was bragging about how he was on Hoth with Vader to capture the Rebel Base, how he spent time on Naboo to secure the planet, how he would patrol level 1313 on Coruscant, all things Ace didn’t truly care about.

Dodge told him, “Yeah, that all changed though when I heard about Endor. We were on a recon mission to Yavin 4 when we got the news. I figured that there was no point in staying with the Empire with the Emperor and Lord Vader dead so I deserted. Laid low on Tatooine for a bit, then on Ord Mantell, then Nar-”

“Dodge, I don’t care.” Ace cut him off. Turning to face Dodge and told him, “This whole time of you talking, hunters could be on our six or worst, the target might have heard us. How long have you been in the Guild?”

Dodge looked nervously away for a second before giving Ace a few glances. Finally, with his eyes to the ground, Dodge said, “This is my first hunt.”

If Ace’s face wasn’t covered, Dodge would have seen the Mandalorian roll his eyes. Not wanting to dwell any further, Ace just agreed to press on. If there were any hunters in the area, he had his beskar to protect him and if worst comes to worst, they’d hit Dodge and not him.

As they began to walk off, Ace noticed a wooden hut not too far off from the trail. There was smoke coming out of the chimney so it was occupied. Maybe they knew what was going on with these marauders they were looking for.

Over the porch was a hanging sign covered in snow. Ace banged on it to knock the snow off and read what it said out loud, “Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post.”

“And Sauna!” Dodge exclaimed. He was about to follow Ace in, but the Mandalorian stopped him and shook his head. Ace went in alone.

Ace entered to feel the warm air from the fireplace heating up the post. He looked around, seeing shelves of all manner of supplies. Many were crude, but he figured it was mostly for local hunters and hikers.

“Yoo-hoo!” Ace heard someone cheer. He looked over to see the burly redheaded owner, eyes on the man’s overly expressed handlebar mustache. Twinkling his fingers, the owner smiled and said, “Big winter blowout. Half off snow boots, coats and a cold remedy of my own invention, _ja_?”

“Uh, no thanks.” Ace said as he pulled the bounty puck from a pouch on his belt. He went over to the counter and placed the puck on it, activating it and projecting Elsa’s hologram. The shopkeeper looked down at it, his lax posture shifting slightly tense, but his smile didn’t fade. Ace asked him, “Have you seen her?”

The shopkeeper took a few glances between Ace and the puck before saying, “No, can’t say that I have.”

“I see. Thank you for your time.” Ace picked the puck up and went out the door.

Dodge was standing out by the trail when he heard the door close. Ace came walking up to him and told him, “We’re on the right trail.”

* * *

A young Northuldra man handed Jack a satchel full of supplies, telling him that they would be ready for the morning. The young man looked over and greeted, “Oh, Queen Elsa!”

Jack looked over to see Elsa timidly walking over to him with a bright smile on her face. He felt his heart skip beats with that look on her face. He loved seeing her happy more than anything else in the entire galaxy. But he was wondering why she was so happy.

She looked to the young man and asked, “May we have a moment, please?”

The young man smiled and obliged, leaving Jack and Elsa alone. Jack looked down at her and asked, “What’s got you all excited?”

She shrugged and said, “I just got off the com with Anna.”

“Is she alright?”

“Yeah, they’re all fine. It’s not about her though. It’s about us.”

“Us?”

“You and me.” She took his hand with both of hers, letting her soft fingers brush against his rough palms. She brought his hand to her lips and kissed his knuckles. When she was done, she looked him in the eyes and said, “Jack, I want to stay with you in Burgess.”

Jack dropped the pack after she said that. The world around them didn’t exist at that moment, it was just the two of them. He had wanted this moment for a long time and now, it’s finally true. He didn’t know if he was dreaming.

“Elsa, are you serious?”

“Of course I’m serious.” Elsa chuckled. She let his hand go and wrapped her arms around him, stood on her toes and kissed him. They stayed like this for a moment and when they parted, she told him, “I want to stay with you and build a life of my own with you.”

“But Elsa...are you certain about this? This wouldn’t be a queen’s life. No maids, no one to-”

“I don’t care about that. I want you.”

Jack’s eyes began to water. He wished this everyday ever since he first met her and now it was all coming true. She wanted to stay with him. He picked her up in his arms, making her yelp, and kissed her deeply.

* * *

Night fell and the Northuldra were celebrating Jack and Elsa’s official engagement. He promised her that once they got to Burgess, they were to be married. Elsa didn’t really feel comfortable about the spectacle, but she didn’t object. To help ease her worry, Jack sat by the bonfire with her in his lap and holding her close. Yelana, Honeymaren and her brother Ryder sat at the fire with them. Elsa may not have felt comfortable, but she couldn’t help but smile at the excitement around her.

Despite the excitement, Jack had a nervous look on his face that went unnoticed. He looked over at Elsa and asked, “Hey, can we talk?”

Elsa was confused, but she agreed. The two stood up and told everyone they’d be back, but they were being watched.

In the bushes near the village, Ace watched them with his rangefinder down. Him and Dodge split up to cover the village. He was on one side and Dodge was on the other. Despite splitting up, Ace was still on guard. He didn’t trust Dodge. Something about him seemed off and his gut instincts were usually correct. Despite that, he watched the couple walk away to a private hut they were staying in.

Ace knew it. Once he saw the fob was taking them into Northuldra territory, he knew something was up. Northuldra weren’t bandits or marauders, yet here she was with them. He didn’t know what was going on, but there was a way to find out. He needed to hear it from her own lips, hence why his rangefinder was down.

Holding his helmet closer to his ear, Ace listened in on their conversation, making out Jack’s voice through the static, “…you sure…this? I mean, I can’t take yo…ay from Anna.”

“Jack, it’s…kay.” Ace heard her voice. “On…we get to Bur…you and I can finally be together, an…all I want.”

Through the infrared scan, he saw Jack and Elsa kiss.

“Shit.” he muttered angrily to himself. “This is a bad hunt. I need to call off Dodge.” He was about to radio Dodge, but then there was a loud explosion near the edge of the village, catching his immediate attention. Drawing his rifle, he growled, “I have a bad feeling about this.”

The Northuldra scrambled as they ran away in panic from the oncoming attack. Dodge led a gang of bounty hunters into the village, firing on innocent people. Some of the Northuldra took arms against the onslaught, arming themselves with staffs, clubs, bow and arrows and tomahawks. While some fell, many fought back, knocking the blasters away and managing to kill some of the bounty hunters, but they were incapacitated and captured.

Outside the village, Jack led Elsa out into the woods with his gaffi staff in hand. He stopped and looked back at the village, Elsa begging him to move. He looked back at her, hesitated for a moment, but told her, “I have to go back.”

“What?” Elsa gasped. “No, we need to run!”

“I can’t leave them! Elsa, you need to get out of here.”

“I won’t leave you!”

Jack then plunged his lips on hers. They stayed this way for a bit until Jack parted from her and ran back into the village.

“Jack!” Elsa cried out.

Running past Jack was Ryder and Honeymaren. Jack shout to them to get Elsa out there. They agreed and ran for her, both of them grabbing onto her. In response, Elsa kicked Ryder between the legs. He buckled and Honeymaren knelt down next to him, trying to comfort him. She looked up to see Elsa run back for the village.

“Elsa, stop!” Honeymaren called out, all on deaf ears.

Back inside the village, Jack fought off the bounty hunters, but they eventually go the better of him, one clubbing him in the face with their pistol. He was disarmed and forced into a group with the rest of the captives. The hunters surrounded them, only ten men with Dodge still alive after the onslaught.

Dodge stepped forward and said, “You all can live if you just hand the queen over.”

Nobody said anything.

“Nothing? Alright.” Dodge then ordered the hunters to ready their weapons. “Fire on my command.”

“No!” Elsa screamed as she ran in.

Jack looked at her and shouted, “Elsa, get out of here!”

“No, Jack. I’m sorry.” Elsa looked at Dodge, who was smirking back at her. With tears falling from her eyes, she said, “If it’s me you want, you can have me. Let them go.”

Dodge only slyly nodded and ordered one of the hunters to collect her. She began to sob as she held her hands out so the hunter could cuff her. She looked over at Jack and saw the look in his eyes. Desperation, betrayal, pain. They both thought they could have their future together at last, but it was all over now.

* * *

Yelana looked around to see all who escaped. While most of the people escaped, she feared for those who didn’t. She feared even more when she saw neither Jack nor Elsa were there either.

“Where’s Jack and Elsa?” she shouted.

Hearing Ryder grunting as Honeymaren carried him over her shoulder. Cupping between his legs, he groaned, “The hunters...captured them.”

“No.” Yelana moaned. She felt her bones turn to rubber thinking about the two being chained up by bounty hunters. She felt like she failed Jack’s father.

Honeymaren sat Ryder on a log and said to Yelana, “Don’t worry, we’ll get them back.”

Yelana became irritable and asked, “How? We can’t fight against a group of bounty hunters.”

One Northuldra woman said, “There’s more of us though. We know these woods, they don’t.”

Then, Ace stepped out from trees, holding his rifle up in the air as a sign of compliance, and shouted, “Northuldra, hear me!”

All of them looked his way, some ready to fight, some with fear in their eyes. All except Yelana, who looked at Ace in amazement. Under her breath, she muttered, “A Mandalorian?”

Honeymaren pointed her staff at him and demanded, “Drop your weapons!”

“I think if it came to blows, you’d come up short, young lady.” Ace replied, but still he knelt down and placed his rifle on the ground and kicked it away. He drew his pistol and tossed it aside the same with his knife. Holding his hands back up, he told them all, “I come in peace.”

“Peace?” Ryder shouted. Still in pain, he struggled to stand up, but he was on his feet and he said, “You’re a bounty hunter! You brought this down on us!”

“I came here looking for Queen Elsa, not to kill innocent people. I was hired to bring her back alive, but when I saw that my tracking fob brought me here, I knew it was no good.”

“Who hired you?” Honeymaren demanded, exerting her staff even more.

“Prince Hans of the Southern Isles.”

Ryder, Yelana and Honeymaren both gasped. Elsa told all three about Hans and how he was trying to force her into marrying him and that he even threatened Arendelle. That’s when she ran away with Jack. All three looked at each other for a moment before turning back to Ace.

Yelana slowly approached Ace, the Mandalorian still holding his hands up. She reached up and brushed her fingers across his armor.

“Yelana?” Honeymaren called.

“It’s been many years since I’ve seen Mandalorian armor up close.” Yelana said. She drew her hand back and looked up into his visor. She told him, “When I was a little girl, a group of Mandalorians came to these lands to fight rebels. Then, the Jedi came and killed them. All but one.”

“Fett.” Ace replied, lowering his hands. He stood quietly for a moment as he looked down at Yelana. They stared at each other for a moment until Ace told her, “That was before my time.”

Yelana nodded and asked, “Will you help us?”

Ace nodded. After a moment, he looked up at all the Northuldra and said, “I have a plan.”

* * *

Dodge dragged Elsa with a wire connected to her binders. Elsa held her head down in shame and guilt. She gave Jack a small glance over her shoulder, not wanting to truly face him. She felt like she betrayed him, giving herself up to these hunters who were sending her back to Hans. He just looked up at her, sorrow plastered across his face. He was so close to keeping her and now he’s losing her. What made Elsa feel even worse was that she brought the Northuldra down with her. With Jack, all the Northuldra were tied up and chained together.

As Elsa looked back at Jack, she slowed down. Dodge noticed and pulled hard on the wire, growling, “Keep moving.”

When Dodge pulled on the wire, Elsa tripped and fell into the mud.

“Hey! Leave her alone!” Jack shouted.

One of the hunters went up to Jack and gave him a strong punch to the stomach. Jack groaned loudly and collapsed to the ground in agonizing pain. Elsa cried out when she saw him go down, begging the hunters to leave him alone. Dodge only chuckled, picked Elsa and continued to pull her along.

Before the entire group began to move, an arrow flew out from the trees and struck a hunter in the chest. Then another arrow struck another hunter in the neck. Then many Northuldra stormed out of the forest and charged the hunters.

Dodge was in awe of the amount of Northuldra that came out. What shocked him even more was Ace was with them, holding his pistol and shooting some of the hunters. Dodge threw Elsa back down to the ground and unstrapped his blaster from over his shoulder and pointed it at Ace. The Mandalorian turned to see Dodge pointing his blaster at him and froze.

Dodge was about to fire when Honeymaren came out of the woods and smacked Dodge’s blaster down, the blaster bolt narrowly missing Ace. She then smacked him across the face with her staff, knocking him down into the mud then helped Elsa back up. She pulled Elsa away from the scene into the safety of the trees.

Dodge regained his composure quickly and saw his team being broken down by Ace and the Northuldra. He groggily raised his rifle and tried to fire again, but his weapon was caked in mud and his trigger was jammed. He kept trying and trying until throwing it aside and pulled out his Westar pistol.

“To hell with this.” he muttered as he climbed to his feet and ran off into the woods.

Jack was free and viciously beating down one of the hunters when one came up behind him with an axe. The hunter was about to strike when Ace blasted him. Jack looked down at the hunter on the ground, then back at Ace, who nodded. Jack gave the hunter one last punch to the face and got to his feet. He looked around and saw that the Northuldra had subdued the remaining bounty hunters. The fight was in their victory.

“Jack!” he heard Elsa cry out. She came running up to him and jumped into his arms, sobbing loudly. He held her tightly and buried his face in her hair. She looked up at him and cried, “I’m so sorry! I didn’t know what to do! I couldn’t let them kill-”

Jack cut her off with a deep and passionate kiss. They stayed this way until Jack parted and told her, “I won’t let anyone else take you from me. Never.”

She smiled and buried her face into his chest.

Yelana came up next to them and asked, “Are you two alright?”

Jack and Elsa parted and assured Yelana they were fine. Ryder and Honeymaren went over to them and comforted them and praised the victory, Elsa apologizing to Ryder for kicking him, to which Ryder laughed it off.

Then, all five looked over at Ace, who was standing on the edge of the forest looking at them.

“Thank you.” Yelana said, earning a nod from Ace before he turned and began to walk away into the forest.

“Wait!” Elsa called to him, pulling herself from Jack’s arms and took a few steps. Ace stopped and looked at her. She asked him, “Why did you help us?”

Ace stood silent, looking at her, Jack and the Northuldra. He looked back at her and told Elsa, “This is the way.”

Without any more words, Ace turned and walked off into the woods.

* * *

Dodge panted as he rested against a tree. He didn’t know how far he made it away from Ace, but he knew he had to head back down the mountain to get to his ship. He’d come back later to figure out where the Queen was heading.

As he continued to catch his breath, he heard a low growl behind him. He recognized the growl and felt his entire body go numb. He turned and found himself face to face with a wampa.

* * *

The Northuldra returned to their village with Jack and Elsa. They all looked about the destruction caused by the bounty hunters and lamented the dead that laid on the ground. Yelana could only hang her head in shame at what she saw. She turned her attention to Jack and Elsa, who had more shame on their faces than her. They must feel responsible for this and Yelana felt terrible for them.

Turning to her people, Yelana ordered, “Salvage what we can and get a pyre going for our fallen. They deserve to rest, they fought hard.” Turning back to Jack and Elsa, she told them, “You two get some rest. You have a long day in the morning.”

Confused, Jack asked, “Why would you house us after all we’ve done? These people are dead because of us.”

“You didn’t kill them. None of this is your fault.”

Elsa intervened, “Yelana, we can’t. We’ll just grab our stuff and leave you in peace.”

“You can, in the morning once you’ve rested.” She pulled Jack away from Elsa and told him, “Jack, I practically raised you like a son. I would never deny you anything. What happened here wasn’t your or Elsa’s fault. We lost brothers and sisters today, but that is the nature of life itself. And I am proud of them because they fell fighting, just like how I trained you and you never gave up. You fought to protect us and the one you love. If your father was here he would be as proud of you as I am now.”

Jack was stunned by Yelana’s words, letting them sink into his core. He grew up on praise from Yelana, but this was the first time she treated him like a son. He never felt more proud now than ever before. He wanted to let his tears fall, but his pride forbade him. He just stood tall and smiled. He turned to see Elsa smiling up at him, just as much pride from her. The woman he loved the most was giving him praise through her smile and he felt his pride triple. And Yelana was right, he saved his friends and this love. Jack knew that he had more than honored his father’s wishes.

Ace found Dodge’s coat on the ground, tore apart and bloodstained. He picked it up with a stick to observe the amount of damage done to it to see what had killed Dodge. He got his answer when he heard the wampa roaring in the distance.

“Well Dodge, I’ll pass on your evaluation to the Guild.” Ace commented. Dropping the coat and standing up, Ace opened his communications link to Garduun to relay his message to Roz. Once she responded, Ace said, “I’m sending my report. This was a bad hunt.”

“A bad hunt, huh?” Roz replied. “Well, when you report a bad hunt, you're usually are correct. I’ll send your report to the Correctional Authority.”

“Right. Also, report Quenton Dodge as K.I.A..”

After a few seconds, Roz told him, “There’s no Quenton Dodge on the registry. Did you work with him?”

“Against my better judgement, I did.”

“Well, if he’s dead that means less filing. Good work, Ace. If your report pans out, you’ll get a finder’s fee. Be safe, Ace.”

“Yeah.” Ace cut the line and began his hike back to his ship. It would take him a while to get back to his ship atop the mountain, but he’s had worse treks.

Ace then thought about the Queen, wondering if the kid she was with was worth the trouble. They were clearly in love, but she was a Queen and he was wearing Northuldra clothing. What could he offer her that she didn’t already have? Why would she give up her life of nobility to be with him?

 _Then again, maybe there’s more to it._ he said to himself. Maybe he offered her a more relaxed life outside the walls of a nice castle and a freedom that she could only dream of. Maybe he was just the kind of man she needed in her life. Maybe he saw her as more than just a queen and that’s why she loves him so much. Then he said to himself, _Maybe I’m just thinking too much into it._

The only thing Ace thought about at this point was what his next job would be. If he was lucky, Roz would give him a hunt worthwhile to get his mind off of this one, possibly going after Sparrow.

**Author's Note:**

> So I should have mentioned this before but I was kind of in a hurry to get this out. This is a repost from a different account. Since I had a specific use for that account and I wanted to make more stories for my Mandalorian character, I decided to make a second one.
> 
> This story was inspired by a Jelsa dream I had where I showed up as my Mandalorian character. I don't know what inspired that dream, but I knew I had to write a story about it. This isn't what happened, but I decided to write my own take on it and this was the result.
> 
> I did edit it and added more and changed some things from the original draft. Personally, I like this take better.
> 
> I have more coming for Ace so keep an eye out if you enjoyed this story. Peace.


End file.
